Review Anything August: Royale – ‘I.D.K.U.’

This review was written in response to a submission to BDCwire’s “Review Anything August” campaign. The opinions in this review are those solely of the author and not of BDCwire as a publication. Stay tuned to BDCwire for more reviews from this feature.

I don’t know you either, Royale [the band]! Which is kind of a shame now that I think about it. I think we could be friends. Your brand of indie guitar swing is pretty sweet, your rhythm section has a lot of bounce and the dynamic shift between tough and tender is quite enjoyable. While there are a couple of fleeting moments that veer close to being too coy for their own good — is that banjo buried in there on the second verse? — the overall vibe and earworm-nature of the tune make it all forgivable.